AuthorTopic: Would law schools consider grades from an unaccredited law school? (Read 1788 times)

I am a first year at Drexel Law and have ultimately decided to go elsewhere for next year. I am worried of course because it is the end of January so surely I have greatly lowered my chances of admissions. Finals are next month and so I am wondering if I should finish the quarter or if I should leave now. This of course depends on whether the law schools I am going to be applying to (Rutgers Newark, Seton Hall, maybe Cardozo) would even consider the grades I received from an unaccredited law school.

Not sure if anyone has the answer but any input would be greatly appreciated.

I actually am applying to an unaccredited law school only because my aunt is the dean and I'm being pressured into it- but I don't actually plan on going. It's a pretty risky choice because it basically says that you couldn't get into any other school- that your standards were low or something. I really don't know how your prospects are at Seton Hall or Rutgers-Newark since they are both lower tier 1, I would try to just switch to a tier 3 or 4 that is accredited.

Can't speak for the OP, but sometimes one's UG institution starts a law school, or it has a particular mission that you like, or it is state accredited but not ABA accredited (example: Nashville School of Law has never attempted ABA accreditation because it is accredited by the State of Tennessee, which allows its grads to sit for the TN bar- its mission is and has always been to train TN lawyers.) If I knew I wanted to practice in Nashville for the rest of my life and were already located there, sure I'd consider it- your only other feasible option without relocation is Vanderbilt, which is a T1 with a national rep (and completely out of my league) unless I want to drive upwards of 2-4 hours to Louisville, Memphis or Knoxville each week and commute back on weekends.

Drexel is a special case- you're talking about a well-regarded institute of higher learning (the University as a whole) starting what is likely to be a T2 school once it is accredited (T3 with a bullet 1st year in the rankings- Newcomer of the Year, T100 2nd year and it will settle in the mid-T2 until it has some clerks and judges under its belt)- see the Drexel threads on that process (they are gunning for accreditation before their first class graduates, and have the resources and backing to make it happen. OP can comment on this.)

OP: send your app in. The area schools you are applying to will be familiar with Drexel's situation. Include why you went to Drexel in your PS and why you want to transfer. Also might be helpful to say who you turned down to go to Drexel and what's causing your change of heart. Definitely share on-thread too whatever you can- I'm interested to hear, as you are one of the first I've heard of to leave Drexel.

What I don't understand is online law degrees- Kaplan University? Are you kidding me? Anyone care to comment?

The best thing would probably be to call a couple of the schools your interested in and ask them... it's an odd case because Drexel is an established institution that is almost certain to be accredited, and because its new so even those schools probably haven't dealt with many applicants in your situation. It also might depend if your lsat/gpa were in their range originally, why you went to drexel, etc... if your numbers were low for them when you applied last year, then you will have to submit your law school grades because nothing else has changed.

Temple: Each year Temple Law accepts only a limited number of transfer students. There are a number of factors to evaluate in transferring. First, Temple only accepts transfers from students who are in the top 20% of their class at a school that is accredited by both the ABA and the AALS

Penn: Applicants for advanced standing (transfer) must be in good standing at a law school that is both a member of the American Association of Law Schools (AALS) and approved by the American Bar Association (ABA).

Rutgers-Camden: Students in good standing transferring from ABA-approved law schools may receive credit toward the degree of Juris Doctor for work entitled to credit in their former school.

Rutgers-Newark: Students who have successfully completed at least one full academic year but not more than one and one-half years of full-time study or 42 credits at another ABA accredited law school may apply for admission with advanced standing to either the day or evening program. Applications are accepted for the fall and spring terms. Persons attending unaccredited law schools do not qualify for transfer with advanced standing.

ABA accreditation came hard for many schools, and regardless of the extreme liklihood of Drexel's eventual accreditation, accredited schools are going to want the process to mean something. Rutgers-Camden may relent, since Drexel's new dean was a former Dean of their law school and most recently RC's Provost